Photo Coverage: THE BROTHER/SISTER PLAYS Open at the Public

Tarell Alvin McCraney's The Brother/Sister Plays have officially launched at the Public Theater. The series Part 2, The Brothers Size and Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet, directed by Robert O'Hara, began previews on October 21. Part 1, In the red and Brown Water, hits the stage. Tina Landau directs. McCraney, one of America's most acclaimed young writers, returns to The Public to complete his trilogy following the success of The Brothers Size in 2007. Performances will run through December 13.

Tarell Alvin McCraney's trilogy is a collection of modern-day stories of kinship, love, heartache and coming-of-age centered around an extended family and community in the Bayou. Winner of the inaugural New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award, McCraney's stories traverse the gritty and lyrical, urban and mythic.

The complete cast for The Brother/Sister Plays features Sterling K. Brown as Shango/Shua; Kimberly Hébert Gregory as Aunt Elegua/Shun; Brian Tyree Henry as Egungun/Oshoosi/Tarell;Andre Holland as Elegba/Marcus; Marc Damon Johnson as Ogun; Sean Allen Krill as O Li Roon / Man From State; Nikiya Mathis as Shun/Shaunta Iyun; Kianné Muschett as Oya/Osha; andHeather Alicia Simms as Nia/Mama Moja/Oba.

The Brother/Sister Plays will feature scenic design by James Schuette; costume design byKaren Perry; lighting design by Peter Kaczorowski; and sound design by Lindsay Jones.

Performances begin Wednesday, October 21 and continue through Sunday, December 13 with an official press opening on Tuesday, November 17. These plays will be presented in two separate shows to be enjoyed independently, in any order, or experienced together. Marathon performances will be scheduled for weekends so audiences can experience all three plays in one day. Visit www.publictheater.org for tickets and a complete performance schedule.

THE PUBLIC THEATER (Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director; Andrew D. Hamingson, Executive Director) was founded by Joseph Papp in 1954 and is now one of the nation's preeminent cultural institutions, producing new plays, musicals, and productions of classics at its downtown and at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The Public's mandate to create a theater for all New Yorkers continues to this day onstage and through extensive outreach and education programs. Each year, over 250,000 people attend Public Theater-related productions and events at six downtown stages, including Joe's Pub, and Shakespeare in the Park. The Public has won 42 Tony Awards, 149 Obies, 40 Drama Desk Awards and four Pulitzer Prizes. The Public has brought 52 shows to Broadway, including Sticks and Bones; That Championship Season; A Chorus Line; The Pirates of Penzance; The Tempest; Bring In 'Da Noise, Bring In 'Da Funk; On the Town; The Ride Down Mt. Morgan; Topdog/Underdog; Elaine Stritch at Liberty; Take Me Out; Caroline, or Change; Well; Passing Strange; and, most recently, the current Tony Award-winning revival of Hair.  For more information, visit www.publictheater.org.

Photos by Peter James Zielinski

The Brother/Sister Plays at the Public Theater

Nalaja Sun

Oskar Eustis

Oskar Eustis

Andrew D. Hamingson with his wife Pam

Director, Robert O'Hara

Kimberly Hebert Gregory

Delroy Lindo

Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney

Tarell Alvin McCraney and Brian Tyree Henry

Kimberly Hebert Gregory, Tarell Alvin McCraney , Tina Landau, and Brian Tyree Henry

Robert O'Hara, Kimberly Hebert Gregory, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Tina Landau, Brian Tyree Henry, and Marc Damon Johnson

Director Robert O'Hara, playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney and director Tina Landau

Kianne Muschett

Tina Landau, Kianne Muschett, Robert O'Hara

Andre Holland

Heather Alicia Simms and Andre Holland

(Clockwise-L) Sean Allan Krill, Robert O'Hara, Heather Alicia Simms, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Brian Tyree Henry, Marc Damon Johnson, Tina Landau and Kimberly Herbert Gregory